Learn How to Professionally Clean a Bathroom! When I ran my cleaning business, I actually preferred to clean the bathrooms. Crazy I know, who likes to clean bathrooms? Well, this girl does.
At first, bathrooms were the one area that would take me the longest to clean. It was frustrating when the dust and hair would become wet and it would be impossible to get up. Gross. I hated, what felt like hours, of scrubbing the shower and tub walls. I would go through so many towels trying to dry up so that I would not leave behind water spots.
With practice and researching the best tools, I developed this professional cleaning system to help me improve how I cleaned bathrooms. When cleaning houses for a living, the more time you spend on a cleaning task the less you make. My goal was to clean in less time, but also maintain a high standard of quality.
That is when I developed my bathroom cleaning system. I was cleaning large master bathrooms in less than 30 minutes. And small bathrooms in 15 – 20 minutes. The best part was, I was still cleaning with a high level of detail that other companies were not.
Disclosure: Some of the links below are Affiliate Links. What that means is I may earn a small commission if you click on one. This comes at no additional cost to you as the buyer. All of these products are products that I used exclusively in my Cleaning Business. I only recommend products or services which I have used, tested, and highly respect. When you order through my link it helps to provide you with free content. I greatly appreciate your support!
How to Professionally Clean a Bathroom
Follow along with this process to learn how to professionally clean a bathroom for a FASTER and DEEPER clean! The purpose of this process is to teach you how to deep clean a bathroom in less time. You will let your cleaner work for you, not clean an area more than once, and minimize your steps so that you are cleaning efficiently and effectively every time.
Start with the Right Tools
To check out all the tools I used in my cleaning business click on my Cleaning Supplies for Professional House Cleaners.
1. Prep your areas:
Shake off all rugs
Give the rugs a good shake then roll them up neatly and set them right outside the door.
Long dust
Start to the left of the door, run the long duster in the corners where the ceiling meets the wall, making your way around the bathroom. Catch any light fixtures, ceiling fans, exhaust fans, and trim above doorways. If you have high cabinetry, this is the time to dust them as well. When done, set the duster right outside the door.
In my cleaning business, I used a long duster similar to the one below. There are several attachments to clean the tops of cabinets and air vents which is great for bathrooms where dust can be difficult to remove due to the high humidity.
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Vacuum the Bathroom thoroughly
It’s important to vacuum the bathroom BEFORE you start cleaning with water and cleaners. Water will splash and inevitably make its way to the floor during the cleaning process. Once that happens, it will make it impossible to vacuum up all the hair and debris that you just shook off from the rugs.
Use a vacuum that is made for hard floors. In my cleaning business, I used a combo vacuum cleaner that vacuumed both carpet and hard floors. You can read about choosing the Best Vacuum Cleaner for your cleaning business here. Vacuum around all edges and under cabinetry/vanities if there is space between the floor.
If you have a garden tub with a large edge, use the hose of the vacuum to take a quick run over the surface to pick up the dust. The more dust you pick up now, the less rinsing and wiping you will have to do later.
Spray down ALL surfaces with your All Purpose Cleaner
Make sure you spray all surfaces first, before any scrubbing. This is when your cleaner will work for you. Many cleaners require a few minutes time to penetrate surfaces. If you are scrubbing right after you spray, you will work twice as long and twice as hard!
Spray in the following order: Vanity and sink, Toilet (spray outside and inside), tub (if you have a separate tub), and finish with the shower/tub combo. This step is super important in your speed cleaning as most all cleaners require time to penetrate soap scum and build up. Always let your cleaner do the work for you!
Pro Tip: Make sure when spraying surfaces that you spray enough cleaner to soak surface. Again the goal is to make your cleaner work for you. If it is not given time to penetrate or there is not enough on the surfaces it can’t do its job!
2. Scrub your bathroom surfaces
Clean the vanity
Grab your detail brush, like the one below, and scrub along where the faucet meets the countertop and around the drain. This will loosen any build-up around these areas and quickly get into the cracks and crevices.
Wet your rag with hot water, ring it out so that it is not soaked, and wipe down the vanity and then the sink. Make sure the rag is not soaked, a soaked rag will leave water on surfaces that can leave water spots.
Make sure you are using hot water, this will help aid in disinfecting plus will dry faster and least likely to leave streaks. We turn the water on as hot as our hands could stand.
Wipe countertops, faucet, and then sink bowl finishing with a quick rinse of the sink. Rinse your rag, and ring it well. Use a dry towel to wipe off any splatter marks that made it to the mirror.
Clean the mirrors
Use your glass cleaner and the microfiber cloth to wipe down the mirrors. Start from the top and wipe down. Once complete, use a clean, dry terry cloth to wipe off any fibers left by the microfiber towel and buff for a streak-free look.
If you enjoy a more green clean, you can use this towel set and warm water for a streak-free finish on your mirrors.
Make sure your rag is not soaked. Use a dry cloth dry to buff out the mirror making your way all the way to the top of the mirror and back down moving in a side-to-side motion.
Clean the tub
Use the detail brush around the faucet, drain, and any other hard-to-reach crevices around your tub. Wet your towel (you can use the same one that you used on the vanity) with HOT water. Wipe the faucet, around the top of the tub, and make your way to the bottom. Finish with wiping the floor of the tub.
Using HOT water and your small plastic cup rinse your tub starting with the side farthest from the drain. Pour the water using a motion to guide the water into the drain. At this point, you do not want to dry the tub. Leave the water to dry while you move on to the shower.
Clean the shower
Fill a plastic cup with HOT water. Dunk your tile brush in the water and start scrubbing the tile. Always start from the top of the shower and make your way down. Move in a side-to-side motion along grout lines, and create a circular motion for areas with built-up soap scum. Keep the brush wet with hot water and refill the cup when needed.
When choosing a scrub brush for cleaning showers, I always opted for a utility brush like the one below. It cleans tougher and reaches hard-to-reach corners.
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When finished with the walls use the tile brush on the shower floor. Start where the floor meets the wall and move the tile brush along grout lines and while also moving the brush in a circular motion around the shower floor. If you have a shower door be sure to run the detail brush along the track of the door. Rinse the brush and grab a clean rag.
Wet your rag with HOT water and wipe down any glass walls and doors. If you have a removable shower head, turn the water on HOT and rinse the shower. Always start from the top of the shower and rinse the cleaning solution and grime down and into the drain.
Once the shower is rinsed down, take a squeegee and wipe down excess water off the walls and floors and push it down the drain. Same as with the tub, don’t dry the shower yet with a towel. Let the remaining water air dry. If you used hot water to rinse the shower, you should not get any streaks or water spots.
Clean the toilet
Start at the top of the toilet, and wipe down until you get to the seat. Wipe the back where the lid is connected to the toilet and the top of the lid. Lift the lid, and wipe under the underside, then wipe down the toilet seat. Lift the seat, lift, and wipe the under the seat, and around the rim.
Get a new towel, and repeat from the beginning to dry off the toilet. Once you have dried the rim, make your way down the toilet bowl to wipe it down. Don’t forget the foot of the toilet. While you are cleaning the foot of the toilet, use a new towel to mop the floor, baseboards, and walls surrounding the toilet. This area is notorious for getting splashes when the toilet flushes.
Take the toilet bowl brush and start-up under the rim of the toilet bowl making your way down to the bottom of the bowl. Flush the toilet and put down the lid, letting the brush dry.
3. Buff and Shine Surfaces
Now you get to dry those surfaces you cleaned! But they have had time to dry so you will not have to use as many towels or sop up lots of water. The trick is to use dry clean microfiber towels.
Dry the Vanity and Mirror.
Using a clean microfiber cloth, start at the back of the vanity, dry off all water still standing and buff out all metal fixtures. This includes the faucet and drains. Use the now slightly damp cloth to dust/wipe down the sides of the vanity (or sink if you just have a pedestal sink).
When drying mirrors and finishes in the bathroom, it is important to use a high-quality microfiber cloth. Cheaper clothes will leave lent behind or streaks. This will not leave a clean finish. I purchased my towels in bulk from MicrofiberWholesale.com
Dry the tub
Wipe and dry the surface buffing and shining any metal fixtures. If you have a ledge around your tub, this is a good time to dust it and any decorations using the slightly damp cloth you used for drying.
Dry the Shower
Using a dry clean towel start from the top of the shower and dry any remaining water left on the shower walls. Buff out glass doors and/or siding as well as all metal fixtures to shine. Use the towel to mop up any remaining water on the floor of the shower.
Mop the Floor
The last step of cleaning your Bathroom is mopping yourself out of the room. Bathrooms are smaller areas and for most bathrooms, you will be able to mop with your hands so that you can get into small spaces and wipe down baseboards.
Start cleaning your floors at the farthest point from the door. Get on your hands and knees, spray the floor with your All Purpose cleaning and use the damp microfiber cloths you used to dry surfaces and wipe the floor clean.
Wipe all baseboards as you move along the room. Bathrooms have high humidity and are prone to splashing, it is best to wipe the baseboards with each cleaning so that the bathroom always has that professional clean look.
Now step back and look at your work!
Use these steps to practice how to professionally clean a bathroom efficiently and effectively every time. If you use your cleaners right, use the right tools you’ll spend less time and less elbow grease getting your bathrooms shiny every time!
Next time you clean your bathroom set a timer and follow my steps. Comment below to let me know how you did!
Frequently asked Questions for Professionally Cleaning a Bathroom
What are the biggest mistakes when cleaning a bathroom?
Not using hot water, using too much water, and not rinsing surfaces enough.
How can I remove hard water stains on shower doors?
Spray a mixture of water and vinegar on your shower doors and let sit. Then wipe off with a microfiber towel. For tougher stains, use a higher concentration of vinegar and spray multiple times before wiping to allow the vinegar to penetrate the hard water stains. Vinegar is an acid and is very effective at cutting through hard water stains.
How can I remove rust and hard stains on my bathtub?
I like to use bar keepers friend for removing stains and rust from tubs. Sprinkle the cleaner on the tub, use a damp microfiber cloth and move in a circular motion over the stains. You can also use a scrub brush as well.
How do you remove hard water stains in the toilet bowl?
Bar keepers friend will help remove the hard water stain in your toilet bowl as well. Sprinkle the cleaner into the toilet bowl and onto your toilet brush. In a circular motion, scrub around concentrating on the stain. Flush the toilet when done.
Next Step: How to Professionally Clean a Kitchen
Looking for other articles on how to clean professionally? Visit my other blog posts.
